Methanex to Mothball Caribbean Plant After Gas Supply Hits Impasse

Global methanol supplier Methanex Corporation said it will indefinitely idle its Titan methanol plant in Trinidad and Tobago as it has been unable to secure a new natural gas supply contract, the company said on its website Monday.

The Vancouver, BC, Canada-based company said its current natural gas contract expires in the third quarter of 2026 and will undertake a preservation process at the Titan 860,000 mt/yr plant to provide optionality for a future restart should conditions materially improve.

“This difficult decision reflects our focus on preserving long-term shareholder value in a challenging environment where the structurally tight gas supply and demand balances in Trinidad and Tobago are making operations commercially unviable,” Methanex President and CEO Rich Sumner said in the statement.

Sumner said the company had worked extensively with Trinidad and Tobago’s National Gas Company and the government to find a solution and acknowledged their continued efforts to address the country’s natural gas supply constraints.

Methanex accounts for roughly 10%-15% of global methanol production capacity, with annual output of about 9 million-10 million mt.

Reporting by Tom Sosnowski, tsosnowski@opisnet.com, Editing by Erik Papke, epapke@opisnet.com.